Today our discussion comes from our most recent annual conference: Why is Housing so Unaffordable? Causes and Solutions. This is our final episode for the conference and will conclude our annual conference content. We hope you enjoyed it, and we’re looking forward to seeing you at next year’s conference.

Today we will be talking with Dr. Marty Rowland. He served in the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation as a

To sustain the affordable housing programs we’ve discussed, we will need sound public policy that addresses the root causes of the crisis. Understanding previous land and housing policy can be a useful guide for navigating our current dilemma. In order to craft the best possible policies, we will need to comprehend how programs in the past failed. Comprehending this can improve future policies to maximize social outcomes.

Dr. Marty Rowland earned his bachelor’s degree from the University of Michigan and his master’s from the University of New Orleans, both in Environmental Engineering. He later went on to earn his Ph.D. in Natural Resource Economics from the University of New Orleans as well.

Dr. Rowland joined the Henry George School to discuss land and housing policies during the progressive era, how rent controls and community land trusts impact wellbeing, and how land-value tax policy has been considered over time.

Today our discussion comes from our most recent annual conference: Why is Housing so Unaffordable? Causes and Solutions. These next 2 episodes will conclude our annual conference content. We hope you enjoyed it, and we’re looking forward to seeing you at next year’s conference.

We were joined today by Rick Rybeck. Rick is

Traditional solutions to the affordable housing crisis have yielded little results. Simply throwing more money at the problem won’t help. Our guest today offers concrete solutions that have yet to be tried, that I think could make a positive impact. Often people with ambitious policy ideas don’t have a plan for implementing them, leaving many people unconvinced. However, today’s guest offers not just solutions, but ways to implement these solutions as well.

Mr. Rybeck received his master's in real estate and urban development from American University and his JD from the American University’s Washington College of Law.

Together we discussed the politics of a land-value tax, why it isn’t an additional tax for everyone, and what its implementation would look like from a legislative perspective.

To check out more of our content, including our research and policy tools, visit our website: https://www.hgsss.org/

Today our discussion comes from our most recent annual conference: Why is Housing so Unaffordable? Causes and Solutions. These next 3 episodes will conclude our annual conference content. We hope you enjoyed it, and we’re looking forward to seeing you at next year’s conference.

For our program today, we were joined by Ms. Katelin Penner. Currently, Ms. Penner is an urban planner for NYC HPD's Office of Neighborhood Strategies focused on the conversion of publicly owned vacant land to deeply affordable housing. She is also the Co-Editor in Chief of the "Hunter Urban Review." 

Conventional methods to making housing more affordable have failed so far. And because the housing crisis is so complex, it will require more creative solutions.

Katelin is a master’s student at Hunter College where she studies urban planning. Her research focuses on vacant lots, the impacts of municipal austerity measures, and community resilience. She put together a fascinating presentation on innovative policies being tested around the world.

Together we discussed potential uses of vacant land, how local governments can better incentivize more equitable uses of housing, and some of the benefits of co-op and tenant-led ownership models.

Today our discussion comes from our most recent annual conference: Why is Housing so Unaffordable? Causes and Solutions. These next 4 episodes will conclude our annual conference content. We hope you enjoyed it, and we’re looking forward to seeing you at next year’s conference.

For our program today, we were joined by Mr. Tom Rossman. Mr. Rossman is a financier and investor, who specializes in developing nations and emerging markets. After the fall of the Soviet Union, Mr. Rossman helped establish investment institutions in Turkey, former Soviet Union states, and North Africa. Throughout his career, Tom has helped nations democratize and sustainably develop to bring new opportunities to these regions. He has spoken at conferences across the world from Baku to London to Houston. He received his bachelor’s degree in history and religious studies from Nyack College and earned his master’s from Tufts in international relations. Currently, he is an advisor to the Telosa Community Foundation; a group hoping to build a futuristic from-scratch city that will revolutionize urban living.

To check out more of our content, including our research and policy tools, visit our website: https://www.hgsss.org/

Today our discussion comes from our most recent annual conference: Why is Housing so Unaffordable? Causes and Solutions.

We were lucky enough to have John Krinsky join us today. Dr. Krinsky is a professor of Political Science at the City University of New York (CUNY).

Thus far, we’ve looked at a lot of trends and changes within the housing industry. We’ve heard a lot about programs and solutions, but, so far, have heard very little about the people inhabiting these homes. Today, we want to talk about the conditions facing the people these solutions are trying to help.

Dr. Krinsky earned his Ph.D. from Columbia University and focuses on public policy, urban politics, and modern protest and activist movements. He is the author of "Who Cleans the Park" and "Free Labor." Both offer examinations of labor and job policies from state and local levels. Dr. Krinsky is also the co-editor of two journals: Metro-politics and Social Movement Studies. In addition to his work in academia, he is also the founder of New York City Community Land Initiative, a grassroots collective of non-profits and NGOs that promote community land trusts and housing for all.

Together, we discussed some of the failures of market-based approaches, evaluating policy responses to poverty & inequality, and the differences in exchange- or monetary-value versus use-value.

To check out more of our content, including our research and policy tools, visit our website: https://www.hgsss.org

Today our discussion comes from our most recent annual conference: Why is Housing so Unaffordable? Causes and Solutions. For the next twelve weeks, our discussions will revolve around the topic of housing and house prices with three subtopics. The first will be root causes, followed by an evaluation of current policy responses, and finishes with alternatives to current policy and thinking around affordability.

We were lucky enough to speak with Brendan Cheney. Brendan is the Director of Policy and Communications at the New York Housing Conference. The New York Housing Conference is a policy and advocacy non-profit dedicated to advancing state, local, and federal housing policies.

Our affordable housing crisis will require comprehensive solutions, which will require reliable data. With good data, we can formulate the best possible policy, understand what areas need the most relief, and empower those shut out of the market due to unaffordability.

With organizations like the New York Housing Conference, policymakers can prevent gentrification, and buyers have help navigating the market. We’re glad to have our guest on at such a pivotal moment in the housing crisis.

Brendan earned his bachelor’s degree in economics and political science from the University of Massachusetts Amherst, and his master’s in public administration from Syracuse. He has extensive experience as a policy analyst and consultant. Mr. Cheney was also a staff writer for Politico, writing about housing policy and homelessness, often using data to communicate trends and complex ideas. As Director of Policy and Operations, he oversees all advocacy and policy efforts on behalf of the conference.

Together, we talked about the priorities of Governor Kathy Hochul, got into the weeds of federal and state housing policy, and explained the concept of “affordability depth.” It was quite the conversation.

We hope you enjoy this talk, and make sure to check back on our page every week for a brand-new episode!

To check out more of our content, including our research and policy tools, visit our website: https://www.hgsss.org/

Today we were lucky enough to speak with Ross Karp. Ross is the Downstate Development Director of Home and Community Renewal (HCR), an agency within New York State. HCR is part of the state’s Executive branch and is in charge of administering housing policy.

When you think of homebuilders, who do you think of? If I had to guess, you were probably thinking about real estate developers or even construction companies. And while they are important factors in our analysis, they are only one piece of the puzzle. State and local governments have a huge influence on housing outcomes, and getting their policies right can be tricky. 

Building new homes requires grants and loans, navigating zoning regulations, and ensuring building codes and standards are met. But doing this all quickly and in large quantities is an uphill battle, to say the least. That’s where state and local government institutions come in. They can either facilitate this process or slow things down and hinder construction.

That’s why I’m thrilled to have our guest on today. New York’s Governor, Kathy Hochul, created a housing plan with $25 billion in funding. As Development Director, Mr. Karp helps oversee these funds and achieve New York’s goal of maintaining and revitalizing communities.

Mr. Karp received his bachelor’s degree in philosophy from the University of Chicago, and his master’s in city planning from MIT. He has extensive policy and governance experience working for both the City of Chicago and New York and within the State of New York.

Together we discussed some of the housing initiatives under Governor Hochul, a few financing options available to developers, and why New York struggles to increase the supply of housing.

We hope you enjoy this talk, and make sure to check back on our page every week for a brand-new episode! 

To check out more of our content, including our research and policy tools, visit our website: https://www.hgsss.org/

Today, our discussion comes from our most recent annual conference: Why is Housing so Unaffordable? Causes and Solutions. For the next twelve weeks, our discussions will revolve around the topic of housing and house prices with three subtopics. The first will be root causes, followed by an evaluation of current policy responses, and finishes with alternatives to current policy and thinking around affordability.

Today, we spoke to Lindsay Duvall. Lindsay is a Senior Organizer for the National Low Income Housing Coalition (NLIHC). NLIHC aims to create policy that ensures people of low income have access to and can afford quality housing through advocacy, activism, and shaping public opinion.

Housing is crucial to economic mobility. Having a roof over your head improves all sorts of outcomes, from healthcare to education. We’ve talked about the trends behind some of the housing issues we’re all experiencing, but we haven’t talked about the trends going on within public policy around housing. Ms. Duvall is an expert on this subject and helps us explore some of the funding and policies contributing to the situation today.

NLIHC advocates policy on behalf of people in order to create a more equitable economy. Their goal is to maintain and improve existing public housing stock while expanding supply to ensure stability. Through their work, NLIHC improves welfare and helps fill in the cracks in our foundation (no pun intended).

Ms. Duvall previously worked at the Oregon Food Bank where she addressed hunger through outreach and volunteer mobilization. She earned her bachelor’s degree in architecture from the University of Cincinnati and a master’s degree in educational leadership and policy from Portland State University.

The Henry George School joined Lindsay to discuss housing policy in the legislative pipeline, some fascinating facts regarding New York City’s housing crisis, and which states offer sufficient affordable renting units for low-income earners.

To check out more of our content, including our research and policy tools, visit our website: https://www.hgsss.org/

Today our discussion comes from our most recent annual conference: Why is Housing so Unaffordable? Causes and Solutions. For the next twelve weeks, our discussions will revolve around the topic of housing and house prices with three subtopics. The first will be root causes, followed by an evaluation of current policy responses, and finishes with alternatives to current policy and thinking around affordability.

For today’s program, we were lucky enough to talk to Brad Lander. Brad is the Comptroller of New York City, where he is in charge of making the best investments possible toward a more sustainable and resilient New York.

As we’ve heard over the past two weeks, housing and affordability problems are quite complex, and the situation has generally become messy. Public policy and government are one part of this institutional entanglement. Calibrating our tools and conducting the correct evaluation is important to creating sustainable development. 

Mr. Lander is a former community organizer and non-profit leader. He began his career at Fifth Avenue Committee, a non-profit that builds and developed affordable housing. After 2009, he became the Director of the Pratt Center for Community Development, an institute in Brooklyn New York, where he focussed on developing communities sustainably and affordably. 

Mr. Lander has been a harsh critic of the New York City tax system and, coming from a non-profit, has different ideas for how to fix it. As comptroller, Brad has tried to amend the system in order to create more resilient communities. 

Together we discussed how the current system of unaffordable housing was created, how taxes can improve or worsen the situation, and what his office will be working towards for the remainder of his term.

To check out more of our content, including our research and policy tools, visit our website: https://www.hgsss.org/

Today our discussion comes from our most recent annual conference: Why is Housing so Unaffordable? Causes and Solutions. For the next twelve weeks, our discussions will revolve around the topic of housing and house prices with three subtopics. The first will be root causes, followed by an evaluation of current policy responses, and finishes with alternatives to current policy and thinking around affordability.

Nowadays housing issues are on everyone’s mind, from ownership to affordability. But because we’re so caught up in the stresses from facing the issues of real-world housing problems, we don’t understand how we got here, and why that matters for finding a solution.

The 20th century saw a shift towards suburbanization: the movement from city living to the suburbs. As a result, city planning moved towards bolstering these areas at the expense of cities. This caused inequality to grow between homeowners and those who can’t afford the purchase of living, creating the unaffordability crisis we experience today.

Mr. Mollineaux is a lifelong Georgist and hosts a popular podcast, Georgist Perspectives, on Stanford’s radio where he hosts discussions on Georgist perspectives.

Our guest today helps us understand the historical trajectories urban planning has led us to and looks to offer redistributive solutions that benefit city dwellers and promote equity.

To check out more of our content, including our research and policy tools, visit our website: https://www.hgsss.org/